Nowakowski: We told him he did the right thing

PHOENIX – The Phoenix Police Department is dealing with an officer charged with murder, accused of killing an unarmed man. But the focus right now is not at that officer, but instead on City Hall.

Two city officials are accused of obstructing a criminal investigation and tampering with a witness. They allegedly contacted the witness in that police murder case — Officer Sergio Virgillo, who blew the whistle on Officer Richard Chrisman’s alleged conduct.

A national watchdog group is claiming the councilmen crossed the line, and maybe even broke the law.

Phoenix police Officer Richard Chrisman, who is facing a second-degree murder charge, had been suspended for misconduct in 2006 and was the subject of several internal investigations related to on-duty traffic incidents, personnel records released Monday show.

Chrisman’s personnel file also show he has received several commendations and positive performance reviews during his nearly 10 years on the force.

Chrisman is accused of fatally shooting 29-year-old Danny Frank Rodriguez while answering a call in south Phoenix on Oct. 5.

Records show Chrisman was suspended without pay for 10 hours on Jan. 27, 2006. The incident of officer misconduct involved Chrisman slipping his partner drug paraphernalia to plant on a homeless woman as a prank in 2005.

Chrisman admitted the joke was his idea and that his behavior was “way beyond unprofessional,” according to a suspension report in his personnel file.

PHOENIX — The Phoenix police officer whose account of a domestic violence call led to murder charges against officer Richard Chrisman is married to a convicted felon.

Sergio Virgillo’s wife, Maria, was convicted of illegal control of an enterprise in 2008 and sentenced to three years probation.

Court documents show Maria Virgillo was one of four people indicted in a drug smuggling operation that trafficked in meth and cocaine in July 2008.

She was sentenced to three years probation in November 2008.

During that time, the indictment says Sergio Virgillo was a detective for Phoenix’s drug enforcement bureau and that his wife provied information obtained from him about undercover practices to her brother, who is named as an “intricate member” of the drug trafficking organization.